Stocks close higher as energy sector rallies on oil-price spike

Stocks close higher as energy sector rallies on oil-price spike

U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude jumps more than 2%


How did major indexes fare?

Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.39%   rose 101.94 points, or 0.4%, to 26,106.77, and the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.41%  added 11.80 points, or 0.4%, to 2,891.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.57%  gained 44.41 points, or 0.6%, to 7,837.13.

What drove the market?

Oil futures surged after reports about attacks on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, near the Strait of Hormuz, with the U.S. Navy rushing to assist the vessels. Brent crude BRNQ19, +0.08%  and U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude CLN19, -0.29% both jumped sharply.






What were analysts saying?





Which stock were on the radar?

Shares of Tyson Foods Inc. TSN, +0.78%  rose 0.8% after the food company said it is introducing a new plant-based meat product under the Raised and Rooted brand. The decision will give Beyond Meat Inc. BYND, -0.41%  another competitor in this fast-growing market. Beyond Meat shares fell 0.4%.

Target Corp. TGT, +0.05% said it was raising its quarterly dividend by 3.1%, to 66 cents a share from 64 cents. Target shares edged up 0.1%.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. LULU, +2.12% shares gained 2.1% after the apparel company specializing in yoga wear reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and sales Wednesday afternoon.


DryShips Inc. DRYS, +22.78%  shares jumped 23% after the cargo-ship operator said it received a buyout offer from SPII Holdings Inc., a company controlled by DryShips’ Chairman and Chief Executive George Economou.

Shares of Walt Disney Co. DIS, +4.44%  climbed 4.4% after analysts at Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock to $160 from $135, projecting that the entertainment giant’s Disney+ streaming service could attract users more quickly than initially expected.

Shares of Fiverr International Ltd. FVRR, +90.00% skyrocketed 90% to $39.90 after the gig-economy software company made its public debut. Fiverr, which makes software that links freelancers with companies that need projects, had priced its shares at $21 for its initial public offering.

How were other markets trading?

Stocks in Asia closed mostly lower, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng IndexHSI, -0.85% declining 0.1% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index SHCOMP, -0.99% ticking up 0.1% while Japan’s Nikkei 225 NIK, +0.40% fell 0.5%. In Europe, stocks were modestly higher with the Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.39% edging up 0.2%.

Gold GCN19, +1.22% prices settled higher and the U.S. dollar DXY, +0.02% strengthened slightly against its peers.

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